longing

as the snow flies
i long for those days
of sunsets
warm weather
oranges
reds
yellows
of palm trees
boats
crashing waves

soon enough

peace

peace

summer 2006

peace

dream

jennifer hudson
american idol
dreamgirls
a true star
very yellow
inspiration
congrats
best supporting actress

all you've got to do is dream....

its thursday
life is slow
mid winter slump
people are tired

sunny
40s
spring is coming
blue skies ahead

i bought
shut up & sing
documentary
about the dixie chicks
it is powerful
no words
the pain
the terror
speaking her mind

i am ashamed of the president of the united states
say it
yell it
bring our troops home

1 month
till urinetown opens
im scared
but a good scared
the lights
the cheers
the routines
the lyrics
the lines
the makeup
the costumes
my accent

i am writing
a paper
ellen degeneres
why she is influential
for the decade
so many reasons
but one for me

W Magazine: How did you reconcile that introspection with your orderly, goal-oriented side—I want to be famous; I want to have money?

Ellen: The first step is the desire and saying it out loud. I don't think I knew that at the time…. It's too weird that I would just write something that fast and then my first response is thinking and saying, I'm going to be on Johnny Carson and be the first woman to be invited over to the couch.

my goal
say it out loud

i want to be famous
i want to have money

i will work hard
i will fight to be number 1

be different
be true
be brave

it all starts with a dream
that is mine
you cant stop me
the fight has begun
ding
round 1
i will be the champ
i am going to shake up the world
watch out

peace out

black white

the world
in black and white

peace

snow day

a snow day!!!
so much of it
up to my knees
windy
cold
blah

no pictures yet
too windy
camera risk

cars burried
lost cause
maybe tomorrow
or friday

24 inches
white
unreal
winter is here

school thurs?
we'll see
lets pray
for no

peace

me 2 u

sweep

Grammy Sweep by Dixie Chicks Is Seen as a Vindication
By JEFF LEEDS

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 12 — The Dixie Chicks’ big win at the Grammy Awards on Sunday exposed ideological tensions between the music industry’s Nashville establishment and the broader, more diverse membership of the Recording Academy, which chooses the Grammy winners, according to voters and music executives interviewed afterward.

To some, the voting served not only as a referendum on President Bush’s handling of the Iraq war, but also on what was perceived as country music’s rejection — and radio’s censorship — of the trio.

Jeff Ayeroff, a longtime music executive and an academy member, said the resounding endorsement of the group reflected the fact that the academy represents “the artist community, which was very angry at what radio did, because it was not very American.” Mr. Ayeroff said he voted for the Dixie Chicks in at least one category.

At the awards on Sunday, the band — Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire and Emily Robison — swept all five of the Grammy categories in which it was nominated, including the top three — album, record and song of the year — the first time all three have been swept in 14 years.

The awards amounted to vindication for the Dixie Chicks, who found their career sidetracked in 2003 after the singer Ms. Maines told a London concert audience shortly before the invasion of Iraq that the band was “ashamed” that the president hailed from their home state, Texas. In the furor that followed, country radio programmers pulled the multiplatinum-selling trio’s music from the airwaves and rallied listeners to destroy their CDs.

The storm flared anew last year when the Dixie Chicks released the album “Taking the Long Way,” which included the single “Not Ready to Make Nice,” a defiant and bitter response to the group’s treatment. And things got worse when band members said in interviews that they were not interested in being part of the commercial country music business; Ms. Maguire, who plays the fiddle, said the group would rather have fans “who get it” instead of “people that have us in their five-disc changer with Reba McEntire and Toby Keith.” Country stations once again all but ignored the Dixie Chicks’ music.

The sweep reflected something of a retort to the Country Music Association’s annual awards, held in November, when the Dixie Chicks were shut out. The vote by the Recording Academy, which is composed of performers, producers, engineers, executives and others across the country, evidently took a different view.

“I think it says that, by and large, the creative community sees what has happened to the Dixie Chicks as unfair and unjust,” said Mike Dungan, a longtime music executive who heads the C.M.A.’s board and is also the president and chief executive of the Capitol Nashville label. (Mr. Dungan said he was not speaking on behalf of the C.M.A.)

But even without support from country music’s traditional institutions, the album became something of a hit. “Taking the Long Way,” bolstered by brisk sales at Starbucks, Amazon and other less traditional outlets, has sold almost 1.9 million copies, and ranked as one of the year’s 10 best sellers. But it fell short compared with albums that did have support from country radio, including those by Carrie Underwood and Rascal Flatts. The trio’s concert tour also appeared weakened by the controversy.

As far as Grammy voters were concerned, the Dixie Chicks “made a great album this year, and their music and their commentary resonated with our membership, as it did with the entire nation,” said Neil Portnow, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Recording Academy’s formal title.

But it is not clear that the support was uniform. Mr. Ayeroff, who founded the voter-registration group Rock the Vote, said a man sitting behind him in the Grammy audience snickered each time the Dixie Chicks received another trophy. “Finally,” Mr. Ayeroff said, “I got so disgusted, I turned around and said: ‘Dude, you’re in California now. Even our Republicans are Democrats.’ ”

It has been clear for years that the preferences of the Recording Academy’s voters differ from those of the traditional Nashville powers that be, particularly country’s major radio programmers. Sunday’s results marked the fourth year in a row that the Grammy winner in the best country album category — “Taking the Long Way” this time — was one that received scant interest from country radio. Last year the winner was Alison Krauss and Union Station for “Lonely Runs Both Ways.” (The last Grammy winner for best country album with significant country radio support was “Home,” the Dixie Chicks’ previous album, which won in 2003.)

Even the Dixie Chicks seemed unsurprised by the disparity. “When you go the C.M.A.’s, Alison Krauss doesn’t win female vocalist of the year or record of the year, but she wins it at the Grammys,” Ms. Maines said backstage. Ms. Maines contrasted the academy’s voters, who are spread among 12 chapters around the nation, with the traditional country music business. “As far as radio and the industry, they’re all right there on four blocks in Nashville.”

Veteran music executives say the membership of the C.M.A. tends to include more radio industry personnel than the Recording Academy. The C.M.A. has about 5,000 members, based primarily in or around Nashville; the academy has more than 11,000 voting members across the country, working in all genres.

The Grammy voting process switches into gear after Sept. 30, the end of the academy’s annual eligibility period for recordings. As a result, many academy members may have been considering their choices at a time when much of the nation’s attention was devoted to the midterm elections, when dissatisfaction with the Iraq war and other factors resulted in the Republicans’ loss of Congress. At the same time, “Shut Up & Sing,” a documentary about the Dixie Chicks’ experience, hit movie theaters.

Grammy nominations were announced in early December, with final ballots sent to voters about a week later.

But analysts said it would be a mistake to read the Dixie Chicks’ wins as simply a reflection of left-leaning ideology rather than the desire of many voters to strike a blow for freedom of expression. Consider “American Idiot,” the 2004 album by the punk-rock band Green Day. It was rife with political imagery, including lines like “Sieg Heil to the president gasman” and won the Grammy for best rock album. But though it also received nominations for album and record of the year, it won neither.


rock on chicks

chicks sweep

(February 11, 2007) The Dixie Chicks won all 5 Grammys in which they were nominated for. The Chicks were awarded Album and Country Album of the year. They also take home the award for Record, Song, and Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal for "Not Ready To Make Nice". The Chicks now have 13 Grammys.

rock on

powerful women

true yellow

peace

speak your mind

be heard

chicks rock

THE DIXIE CHICKS
THE DIXIE CHICKS
THE DIXIE CHICKS
yes
u believe

from rosie.com

me

a photo shoot
this is me
here are some
enjoy
i did

peace

snow

groundhog day
big snow storm
4 inches
6 hour storm
first storm of the winter

blues and funk weekend
night 1
fri night
carey bell
a legend
dressed in purple
harmonicas in hand

night 2 tonight
gonna heat things up

urinetown is great
46 days
and counting
my character is southern
this is hard
to read your lines
in a southern voice
we are working

3 days
in the gym
a week
i feel great
alive

classes are great
i am loving them

i return to tv
on friday
a version of the view
with men
4 of us
should be interesting
fun
ill get pictures to post

thats it
here we go
its saturday

peace